In a ward discussion of pyloric stenosis and pylorospasm in infancy, the question was raised as to the results of operation or nonoperation upon gastric function and motility later on in life. Despite the voluminous literature on the subject of pyloric obstruction from both the medical and surgical standpoints, we were unable to find any data relating to this point, except the statement, which coincided with our own observation, that children who recovered from pyloric stenosis—either with or without operative intervention—seemed to develop normally and to have no ill effects from the early disorder and malnutrition.

In order to obtain some definite data we determined to hunt up some old medical and surgical cases which had been treated in the past at the St. Louis Children's Hospital and make studies of the gastrointestinal motility, and enlisted the services of Dr. Mills of the department of roentgenology to carry out